Kita Pantam A2 Kurd

Buy Kita A2 Kurd Handpan

Kita Pantam is suitable for beginners as well as for advanced handpan players. The sophisticated sound balance makes these instruments a special playing experience. The medium-length sustain enables both fast, intense and calm melodic playing styles.

Each Kita Handpan is made with passion, dedication and perfection. All instruments are handcrafted by Nima Taghavi and his team and finished down to the smallest detail, both visually and tonally.

The sound of the Orient is in every Kita Pantam. Manufactured in Esfahan, in the heart of Iran, Kita is one of many civil projects of hope and peace in a politically troubled country. Kita is one of the first manufacturers outside Europe to become part of our Handpan.World network. These instruments not only bring a very unique and special sound spectrum, but also expand the Handpan.World vision: a worldwide, solidarity-based association of the Handpan community. We are so grateful to be able to represent the Orient and its sounds in the Handpan.World cosmos.

Personalized designs & custom-made products:

Kita Pantam is extremely creative and experienced in developing unique handpan designs. No other high-quality handpan maker has such a wide range of unusual finishes to offer. This makes it possible to fulfill special design wishes. You can personalize your Kita Handpan according to your style. We offer a wide range of fascinating designs that only the Kita team can create.

We have at least one design of every classic mood in stock. If your desired design is not available, you can order it via the Handpan online store. As Kita has already prepared almost every tuning with nine and ten tone fields, it takes approx. 5 weeks for a custom design to be delivered to you. For special tunings - especially low scales or extended handpan instruments with many additional tone fields and bottom notes - the production time can take up to three months.

Mutant handpans, low scales and bottom notes at Kita Pantam:

Kita Pantam is one of the few handpan manufacturers in the world that can produce almost all scales and tunings - even those that are considered particularly challenging, such as mutant handpans and low scales.

Mutant handpans are those that have additional notes between the ding and the tone circle. These instruments give the player more versatility and flexibility when playing complex melodies.

Extended handpans with bottom notes are instruments with additional tone fields on the underside. Kita pantams can have up to 20 tone fields on a handpan. You can find out which scale can be built with how many tone fields in the respective product.

Low scales, with the fundamental tone of scales B2 to F2, can also be made.

The process of making these special instruments is much more time-consuming and riskier than with standard handpans. The production can therefore take up to three months and is more cost-intensive than conventional tunings.

Kita handpan made of nitrated steel:

Nitrated steel is a heat-treated steel sheet into which nitrogen has been introduced. Nitrogen hardens the material and makes it more stable and resistant to strikes and contact with the instrument. This increases the tuning stability of the handpan and the player can enjoy the instrument for longer until it needs to be retuned. Nitrated steel was first used to make the first handpan drums and was later developed further by handpan, pantam and sound sculptor makers.

Although handpans are nowadays made of both nitrated steel and stainless steel, nitrated steel, the original material of the first handpans, still seems to be in greater demand among handpan enthusiasts. This type of material offers a medium sustain range, more ceramic and clay sound and high frequencies in the notes, which makes it good for outdoor playing. In addition, notes have a clearer and separated sound, which optimizes the nitrated steel Kita pantams for faster and more professional playing.

Steel is known to be susceptible to rust and corrosion, and so are the nitrated Kita pantams. To protect them from rust, they should always be maintained with the appropriate oil/wax. You can find out the complete know-how on how to protect your pantam or handpan here: -> Handpan care

Kita Pantam make their raw shells themselves - unlike many other makers. Using a special pressing process, they manage to press the shells evenly so that the material thickness is evenly distributed. Other shells have the problem that they are thinner towards the center than at the edge - which leads to less sound stability.

How do I look after my Kita handpan properly?

Handpans made of nitrated steel require regular renewal of the protective coating on their surface. Applying a special care oil for handpans creates a patina that protects your instrument from the effects of salts, acids and moisture. This prevents rust formation and discoloration of the material and ensures that the original surface appearance is preserved for a long time. When caring for your Handpan, use a very soft microfiber cloth to avoid scratches. To ensure good care of your Handpan, we recommend one of our Handpan care oils or care sets.

Before you apply the Handpan oil, you should definitely remove any accumulated dirt such as grease, salts and acids with a high-percentage rubbing alcohol. This will prevent the maintenance oil from mixing with substances that are harmful to the steel and having a negative effect on the material despite the supposed protective layer. You can buy cleaning alcohol such as isopropanol in any drugstore and many supermarkets or you can order it here from the Handpan.World online store.

Neglected care can lead to flying rust and even rust formation in depth, especially with nitrated Handpans. Weekly care of your Kita Handpan is therefore essential.

Important notes:

1. Never store your Handpan in a bag.
2. Wash your hands before every game.
3. Clean and care for your Handpan every 1-2 weeks

-> Click here for detailed handpan care instructions

Diameter: 53 cm
Height: 26.5cm
Weight: approx. 4kg
Material: nitrated steel

Tuning name: Kurd
Synonyms: Aeolian
Basic tone sequence: A2/ E F G A B C D
Effect: Warm - Mysterious - Dreamy
Tone range: Heptatonic

Mode: Phrygian (tonal center 1st note ) = Major
or Aeolian (tonal center : B) = Minor

Tonal center : DING or first note
Semitones : 7- 1 - 2 - 2 - 2- 3 - 2 - 2

Description Handpan tuning Kurd:

The Kurd tuning is, if you like, the natural minor variant of the handpan tunings. Due to its particularly harmonious combination of notes, it is particularly suitable for beginners. It can be used to play anything from calm and meditative to melancholic to powerful and cheerful, with lots of variation.

Even though this tuning can sound very sentimental, it can also be used to create cheerful soundscapes. For example, the second and third notes each produce a major triad. Just be aware that the second and third notes will rub when played at the same time; you can of course also use this tension deliberately to add spice to your playing and make the relaxation have a stronger effect afterwards.

This tuning is one of the first seven-tone tunings to be built and has become very well known through several videos on the Internet.

Possible tone sequences:

Basic tone sequence with 8 notes (as in the video): A2/ E F G A B C E (as in the video)
Tone sequence with 9 notes: A2/ E F G A B C D (E)
Tone sequence with 10 notes: A2/ E F G A B C D (E F)
Tone sequence with 11 notes: A2/ E F G A B C D (E F G)
Tone sequence with 12 notes: A2/ E F G A B C D (E F G A)
Tone sequence with 13 notes: A2/ E F G A B C D (E F G A B)
Tone sequence with 14 notes: A2/ E F G A B C D (E F G A B C)

*Bottom notes are additional tone fields on the underside of the handpan and are written in round brackets, e.g. (D E).

Mutant handpans have additional notes on the top shell in the second row - between the chorus and the root note. Mutant notes are written in curly brackets e.g. {D E}.

→ You can read a detailed article on mutant & bottom-note handpans here: Blog post

→ Discover our full selection of mutant & bottom-note handpans here

We only list the standard layouts under "Possible tone sequences". On request, our handpans can also be made with other notes and in other arrangements. Simply write an email with your request to: service@handpan.world

Origin and music theory of the Kurd tuning for handpans:

Kurd takes its name from the Arabic/Turkish maqam Kurd. With this maqam, this tone selection also shares the arrangement of the tones if one assumes that the tonal center lies on the first tone in the circle. This creates the complete Phrygian mode, which is characterized by a semitone step from the root note to the second note of the scale and is responsible for the mysterious sound of the scale.

However, an ambivalence remains, as the DING is a fifth below the first note and thus appears like a second tonal center, which allows the mode to change to Aeolian (natural minor). Depending on how you play, you can switch between a natural minor and a Phrygian sound character. With Kurd you can play anything from calm and meditative to melancholic to powerful and cheerful, with lots of variation.

Kurd shares with other minor variations (cf. Celtic Minor/Integral) the leap of a fifth from the DING to the first note. From this fifth step, assuming that the tonal center is the DING, you have all the tone steps of a natural minor scale (aeolian). Kurd's semitone step between the first and second note is special. This step is also present in the maqam Kurd (Arabic or Turkish scale system) of the same name (cf. semai Kurd), but also in the Phrygian mode. The Phrygian mode is used in jazz, psychedelic rock, flamenco and fado, but also in classical music.

Nima Taghavi started building handpans in 2015 and founded KitaDrums - now Kita Pantam - at the end of that year. Initially, Nima Taghavi built 12-inch steel tongue drums while exploring the art of handpan making. As the workflow and manufacturing processes evolved, the steel tongue drums were replaced by stainless steel instruments and soon after, tongue pans (overtone tongue drums) were added to the portfolio.

At the end of 2017, Kita Pantam succeeded in building the first hand pans or pantams, as they call their instruments. Since then, the range of different instruments has been continuously expanded and improved. The team of 20 makers is now probably the highest quality manufacturer of handpans in Iran. All instruments are handmade by Nima and his team. Kita Pantam is made with passion, dedication and perfection.

We at Handpan.World are grateful for the very close cooperation and have the honor to offer these unique instruments exclusively in Europe.